The Short of It:

A very weird, mixed-up story about a guy’s conversations with God. I think.

The Rest of It:

Where do I start? This is quite possibly the worst audio book I’ve ever listened to. I’m not sure what I expected when I discovered that Rick Springfield had written a novel, but what played out before me was like smoking some bad weed and then being over taken by fumes of an unknown variety. My eyes watered. My ears hurt. I kept telling myself, it’s Rick! It’s got to be good. I mean, I love the guy. I have loved him since the 80′s. I loved him through his stint on General Hospital and I still think he’s right up there musically. But writing? Not his strong suit.

The story is about a guy named Bobby. He steals a self-help book titled Magnificent Vibration. Inside, he finds a 1-800 number and calls it. When the guy on the other end answers and introduces himself as God, an interesting conversation takes place. Bobby then hooks up with a sex-pot named Alice and the two head off on an adventure.

I got through two discs and between those discs, I think the main character mentions masturbation, I don’t know, at least twenty times and Springfield’s use of colorful expressions to represent the act was impressive. But putting all that aside, the story is all over the place. I listened to those two discs uninterrupted and had to go back a few times to figure out what was going on. There is a little bit of humor in between the gritty bits but overall, the story, the reading (slurred words, poor attempt at an accent maybe?) were just too much for me to keep going.

I’ve been told that I have a good sense of humor and can be a little sarcastic at times so I get the sarcasm and the jabs and all that, but the dialogue was really what made this difficult to listen to. Perhaps it plays out better in print, but I doubt it.

If you’ve read the book or listened to the audio, I’d be interested in your opinion on this one.

For more reviews, visit my blog: Book Chatter. ( )

I CONFESS I DID NOT FINISH READING THIS BOOK!!!!!
This was one of two books I struggled through this week. The first on was just as bad as this one for different reasons.
I will also confess I did not finish either one, this used to bother me- which is something people who like to read will understand- but I have come to the conclusion that life is too short to waste on crap. I did not know the Rick Springfield fancied himself as an author especially considering that his major claim to fame is that he was on a soap opera in the 80's and also during that time released a song that everyone on the planet knows- "Jesse's Girl". He has a greatest hits album which shockingly is not on a 45! At this point it probably will come as no surprise that I have not nor will I be reading his, I guess you would call it memoir, Late, Late at Night, but I wonder if it is anywhere near as bad as this book.
The premise of Magnificent Vibration is a man named Horatio/Bob steals a self help book from a bookstore and written inside it is a phone number, which turns out to belong to God. After talking to God he meets a confused nun in a bar, and I guess at some point they head out together to do something, or search for meaning, who cares. I thought the book would be funny. It's not.
First off there are no chapters, just three different fonts as Horatio tells the story in the present, the past and a random story about an old man who has seen the Loch Ness monster. As far as I can tell from the first hundred pages, Rick Springfield hates organized religion, and his main character was obsessed with sex and masterbation growing up. Maybe the author was as well, I don't really care since he was not able to incorporate any of these themes into a story that was readable. In fact at least for as far as I made through the book, it none of these themes were particularly offensive, he just managed to mix them in to a very boring story.
This book for me was a complete waste of time, thank god I didn't spend any more time finishing it. ( )

Rock singer Rick Springfield can write! I've read his autobiography and enjoyed it. This is his first novel. Told in first person by Horation/Tio/Robert/Bobby (that is all one person), it is a story of life, love, loss, and potential disaster.

When Bobby steals a book called Magnificent Vibration, he finds a phone number, to call God. What follows is a bit of a roller coaster ride as he meets two others who bought the same book, one a nun/novice and another a petty criminal, reformed.

It has a kick and quite a twist at the end of the book but is worth the effort to get there. ( )

Rick Springfield's Late, Late at Night was by far the best autobiography I have ever read, so it was natural for me to pick up Springfield's novel, Magnificent Vibration. A very fast read, written with slightly acerbic wit and charm with a twisted ending that leaves the reader thinking, what would I do in this situation?

Three humans, Horatio Cotton, Alice Young and Lexington Vargas are driven together by an unusual novel called Magnificent Vibration. Inside of Horatio's (Bobby's) novel is the number 1-800-CALL-GOD, so he does. Desperate and despondent after a divorce, with his life's back story being slowly unfolded, these three end up on an adventure of a lifetime. ( )